


A Favor

by DarkMoonMaiden



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Gen, Magical Items, Minor Violence, UMY Secret Santa, Urban Magic Yogs, Yuletide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2015-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-09 08:03:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5531930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkMoonMaiden/pseuds/DarkMoonMaiden
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Lal, you are the single worst cousin a person could ever have,” Will snarled in a loud whisper, jabbing his finger into Lalna’s chest. “You can’t do this to me.”<br/>“Why am I the bad one?” Lalna protested, jabbing at Will’s chest in retaliation. Will opened his mouth in indignation, swatting his hand away. “We just bought the same present. One of us is going to have to buy another one, and it sure as hell isn’t going to be me.”<br/>***<br/>Will has to brave the streets of the city during Yuletide Eve to find a gift for his uncle. It goes as well as one can expect.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Favor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nevertrustakobold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nevertrustakobold/gifts).



> This is my gift for justanotheryogblog (nevertrustakobold here on AO3) for the UMY Secret Santa :) I hope you like it!!

“Lal, you are the single worst cousin a person could _ever_ have,” Will snarled in a loud whisper, jabbing his finger into Lalna’s chest. “You can’t do this to me.”

“Why am I the bad one?” Lalna protested, jabbing at Will’s chest in retaliation. Will opened his mouth in indignation, swatting his hand away. “We just bought the same present. One of us is going to have to buy another one, and it sure as hell isn’t going to be me.”

This honestly couldn’t be happening. This was a legitimate _nightmare_. When he voiced as much, Lalna wholeheartedly agreed with him.

Both of them had bought the same present for Xephos. While that may not have sounded as big of a deal as Will and Lalna were making it out to be, _it fucking was_. Xephos would accept any gift, no matter what it was, but had The Look. It was a specific look that was saved for his birthday and Yuletide, a look that said, ‘I appreciate the thought and effort of buying this present, but I’m disappointed by it and highly unimpressed.’ He’d never _voice_ those feelings of course, but he might as well have, the implication was so strong.

Will had honestly thought that no one else would have thought of the gift he’d gotten. It was a decently sized green teapot, with sigils carefully painted all around it and under it. The sigils not only made sure that the tea stayed warm and fresh, but when activated, could enchant the drink with a certain spell: one dispelled anxiety from the drinker, another brought sleep to the sleepless, and yet another brought on confidence and courage.

After a hectic week, Will and Lalna convened on Yuletide Eve to compare gifts, making sure that there was no duplicates. That’s when everything went to hell at the discovery of the identical teapots. A minor panic and five rounds of rock-paper-scissors later, Will was feeling more frazzled than ever and Lalna looked unbelievably relieved.

Now, Will scowled and yanked his boots on viciously. “I won’t forget about this,” he threatened his cousin.

Lalna sighed, obviously feeling some kind of guilt at the sight of Will. “Look, mate, I’ll help you pay for it,” Lalna said, digging out his wallet and pulling out a couple of bills. “I’ll pay for, like, half.”

Will gaped at the amount, recounting it twice to make sure he was right in his assessment of it. “How did you even _get_ all of this money?” he exclaimed. “You don’t even have a job.”

“Don’t think about it too hard,” Lalna said evasively. “Either take it or don’t.”

Will stuck it in his wallet without further ado, deciding to not look a gift horse in the mouth. “Alright, I’ll try to be back by midnight, but no promises,” Will said, winding his scarf around his neck. “Can you make sure to leave the front door unlocked?”

“I’ll try,” Lalna shrugged helplessly. “But it might lock automatically when everyone falls asleep. It _should_ open if you try to get in, though.”

“Ugh. Great,” Will huffed, rolling his eyes. “Well, then keep your phone on, so you can unlock the door when I get stuck out in the cold.” Lalna nodded in understanding, putting two thumbs up.

“Will? Are you going out?”

Will bit back a frustrated yell when Xephos entered the hallway, wearing a red and white jumper and holding two cups of coffee. He looked at his two boys, suspicion growing in his eyes as he immediately sensed that they were up to something.

“Yeah,” he said. “I just had some errands to run.”

Xephos’ gaze narrowed. “Who’s Yuletide present did you forget?” he demanded. “Will, you told me that you’d finished your shopping last week.”

“I _did_ finish last week,” he defended himself. “I just--er, I need to pick up Uncle Honeydew’s present from the shop. I was too busy all week to do it and _Lal,_ here”--he gave his cousin a venomous grin--”just told me that he hadn’t done it _when I asked him to._ ”

Lalna scowled at him, silently demanding why Will felt the need to throw him under the bus, too. He backed off quickly at the murderous intent he saw behind Will’s eyes.

“Well, then please hurry,” Xephos sighed, crossing his arms. “I’m heading to bed, and there are always some unsavory people out this time of night.”

“I’ll be fast,” Will promised, one foot already out of the door. “Sleep well! I'll see you in the morning.”

***

It wasn’t completely a lie, what he’d told Xephos. He _did_ need to pick up Honeydew’s gift from Kirin’s shop deep in the city. The fae was the only one who had been more than willing to converse with him to find the perfect gift, and then help him track it down.

When he opened the shop’s door, Kirin looked up from his book, glasses perched on the end of his nose. “Will!” he exclaimed warmly. “I was beginning to fear that you’d forgotten to come.”

“Sorry, I kept getting caught up with school and other things,” he said apologetically. “But thank you so much for keeping the store open so late.”

Kirin grinned his customary smile, with too many teeth to make it seem completely innocent. “Anything for you, dear Will,” he rumbled, pushing up out of the chair. “It was no big inconvenience. A lot of customers come in on the eve of Yuletide.”

He closed to book and set his glasses down next to it before going into the back rooms. He came back out only moments later, holding a box in one of his hands. “Here you are,” he said triumphantly, setting it on the counter. “After all of that hassle, it’s finally here.”

“Thank you so much for helping me with this,” Will said earnestly, pulling the box closer to him. He could feel magic thrumming for it, something wild and foreign that he’d never felt before.

The crystal was definitely something special. It was a milky white, and held a mountain spirit, wild and powerful. It could glow brightly enough to light a whole cavern, and, according to dwarves, held the “feeling” of being in a cave. Will knew that Honeydew often had wistful moments where he missed his mountains, craving them with his whole being, but refused to leave his family to visit them. He hoped that this could ease some of that homesickness.

“You’re quite welcome, Will. In fact, I enjoyed the challenge.” There was a gleam in Kirin’s eyes that set Will on edge, the hair on his arms starting to stand on end. “Anyway. I’m sure that your uncle will love this. Perhaps you should get him something else, too? Maybe some clasps for his beard?”

Will had been prepared for this sort of question. “No, I only need this,” he said with rehearsed politeness. “Nothing else.”

“Are you _sure_?” Kirin pressed persuasively. “Or perhaps something for Xephos, hm? I have a few homely charms that I know would be perfect.”

Will hesitated. He _knew_ that taking more than he should from a fae, especially Kirin, was possibly one of the worst ideas imaginable. But he was getting desperate to find another gift for Xephos before the night was up and tomorrow morning arrived, bringing with it the gift exchanges.

No. He wasn’t going to be that dumb.

“I’m good, really,” Will said in a rush, picking up the box. “I have to go, but maybe I’ll see you around. Happy Yuletide, Kirin.”

“Have a safe night, Will.”

***

There was a quaint, old shop on the other side of town, run by a willowy witch and her cat familiar. Will had went with Lomadia and Xephos a few times there, and knew her well enough to know that she wouldn’t cheat him out of his money (especially when it was for a gift for Xephos; everyone knew better than to cross his path).

She was on a ladder, restacking books when Will entered, the bell above the door jingling merrily. She looked down at him, giving him a thin, wary smile.

“Good evening, Xephos’ nephew,” she greeted him. She put away the last book and climbed down, brushing the dust off her hands on her skirt. She seemed stiff, uncertain of why he was there. “Shouldn’t you be spending time with your family?”

“Yeah, but I seem to be in a bit of a dilemma,” he said with a grimace. He explained the situation and waited for her to stop cackling.

“Oh, only you two would manage to buy the same, obscure gift,” she tittered, hand resting on her cheek and earlier melancholy nowhere to be found. “I would expect him and his twin to do it, but certainly not you.”

“I know, it was a surprise to everyone,” Will agreed sourly. “But can you help me find something else?”

“Those are dangerous words to say, Will,” she said immediately, lips twisting into a reproving frown. “You shouldn’t toss phrases like that around so carelessly. A fae wouldn’t hesitate to pounce on it and eat you alive.”

“Okay, look, I’m just really desperate here. Can you help me find something that he’d like? _Anything._ ”

Something seemed to click in the storeowner’s mind, and she sat up straighter. “I...think I have an idea,” she said slowly, standing up. "It...might be a bit pricey."

"I'll worry about that if I decide I'll buy it."

She went to the back rooms again and returned moments later, carrying a black box. She set it on the counter between them.

It was made of what seemed to be a dark wood, sturdy and all carved in one piece. Each of the sides had intricate designs carved into it, swirls and symbols and stylized flowers. Some of the petals of the flowers were painted a faded red and yellow, but it otherwise lacked color.

“It’s a space enchanter,” she explained, staring at it. “You put it in a closet, or a pantry, and it will immediately expand the area. Food doesn’t go bad in it, plants don’t die, ice doesn’t melt, and the best part? It’s portable. If you need to move it, you only need to push down the top, and everything in it will shrink back down inside of it. They’re really hard to come by, and I know for a fact that Xephos would love it.”

Will stared at it in awe. “This is amazing,” he exclaimed. “It’s perfect, I’ll take it.”

Her eyes flew open with excitement. “Great!” she said loudly. “Fantastic. I’m, er, sure he’ll be really happy. It’s seventy-five dollars.”

“That’s...surprisingly cheap,” he said, digging out the money from his wallet. “I thought it’d be a lot more expensive.”

“Think of it as an after Yuletide sale,” she said quickly, giving him a fleeting smile. “Just me getting ahead of the game and getting rid of some of my old stock before I get new things.”

Will shrugged and handed her the money Lalna had given him, ignoring the small voice in the back of his mind that said it was slightly suspicious. But then he rationalized that it wasn’t actually _that_ weird--he knew that Aunt Lomadia and Nilesy always had a huge sale after Yuletide and the New Year, trying to get rid of everything that they hadn’t sold before the holiday.

The storekeeper stuffed the cash into the pocket of her jacket and rummaged around underneath the table until she found some brown wrapping paper. She expertly wrapped up the gift, shoving it into Will’s hands and then ushering him towards the door.

“If you’ll excuse me, I’m already late to a party,” she said by way of explanation, pushing him out of her shop.

“But--you didn’t tell me how it works!” he called out to her.

She winced in annoyance, still going through her keychain until she found the right key. “Just put it in the pantry, press the side that has a circle, close the door, and when you open it, then it’ll be working. Good _night_.”

The storekeeper slammed the door shut, locking it and flipping the ‘open’ sign to ‘closed.’

Will frowned at the shop before sighing and leaving, heading towards the subway. There were a few clumps of people, all heading home or to a party. The next train wasn’t due for a few minutes, so he sat down on one of the vacant benches and dialed Lalna’s number.

“What do you know about space enchanters?” he asked without preamble, toying with the box.

“ _Only that they’re bloody amazing and extremely hard to come by_ ,” Lalna said. “ _Why?_ ”

“Because somehow I just bought one.”

There was a beat of silence. “ _No fucking way_ ,” Lalna said slowly, awe obvious in his voice. “ _You son of a bitch._ How?”

“I’m not actually sure, actually,” he said, holding the phone between his ear and shoulder as he pushed the box back into his bag. “Do you know that witch down on Locust Street? She was having some kind of major sale and I got it really cheap.”

Lalna swore at him loudly. “ _I_ knew _I should’ve gone there for a present_!” he exclaimed. “ _You bastard. Way to outdo me on the present._ ”

“Oh yeah, I’m _so_ sorry for getting a better present after I had to run around trying to find a new one,” Will said, sarcasm dripping off his voice. A strong breeze started up, and he heard the train approaching. “The train’s coming. We’ll talk about it later, okay? I should be home in an hour or so.”

Lalna bid goodbye, and Will stood up.

The doors to the train opened, and a flood of people poured out, raucous and drunk as they shuffled towards the exit. Will tried to politely push his way through them, but it was practically impossible.

Will was just about to make it when a stone like hand wrapped around his upper arm and dragged him to the side with unsettling strength. He barely made a squeak before an equally strong hand clamped over his mouth. He struggled, but no one seemed to notice as he was forced into a small room filled with maintenance and cleaning eqipment. He tried to reach out with his magic for electricity, but he was too muddled and distracted to get a proper grip on it to harness its power.

The grip on Will was released abruptly, but then he was being shoved against the wall, held up by the collar of his shirt. Finally facing his assailant, he could see that it wasn’t actually one, but _two_. He couldn’t tell if he felt better or worse when he saw Ross holding him tightly, Smith and Trott only a few steps behind him. He yelped when his bag was ripped off of his shoulder and tossed back to them.

Smith frowned deeply, rummaging around the bag. "You sure he's the one who has it?" he asked. "'E's a little too mousy to have something that powerful." Will's muffled indignant sound was ignored by all of them.

"It's always the quiet ones," Trott said sagely.

“I can smell it,” Ross assured him, pinning Will with his intense blue eyes. “It’s definitely with him.”

“Alright, then, cough it up, tech-boy,” Smith said, holding his hand out pointedly. “Give it to us, and we’ll let out outta here without hurting you.”

“I have...no clue...what you’re...talking...about,” he gasped out, trying to yank Ross’ hand away from his throat.

“Oh, I’m pretty sure you do,” Trott rumbled. “A pretty little flower that’s rightfully ours has gone missing, and Ross is saying that its magic is currently on _you_.”

“I can’t find it,” Smith huffed. “Where are you hiding it, mate? Hm? I’d be quick with your answer, or Ross is gonna start breaking some fingers.”

What the _hell_ were they talking about? A flower? Why were they going through all of this trouble for some plant? Will knew that the three were certifiably insane, but it sounded like they had all gone completely off their rockers at this point.

He tried to open his mouth and inform them of this, but was interrupted by all of the lights abruptly flicking off, as if being covered by some kind of fabric or carpet of smoke. Almost as soon as it descended, he felt his connection with the lightbulbs and the electricity around him abruptly disappear, the low hum that was always present and that had become a sort of comfort to Will being yanked away from him so fast it left him reeling.

He heard Smith let out a muffled yell, and then the hands pinning him to the wall were ripped away. He pushed off the wall, preparing to defend himself or make a run for the door, but was halted another, thinner grip on his arm that sent uneasy shivers running up his spine. He was dragged backwards until his back touched something slimy that felt vaguely humanoid. His toes and fingers immediately started to go numb, as if he'd been thrown into a frozen lake.

The lights grew bright enough to see, but were still enveloped in a thick layer of smoke. Ross was leaning heavily against the wall on the opposite side of the room, clutching at his arm. Smith was trying to check the wound, and Trott was in front of them, eyes glowing unnaturally with fury.

“This is the little thief?”

That voice. _Lying_.

He tried to look back at the fae behind him, but he could only twist his head enough to see Lying’s twisted smile, their teeth sharp and chipped.

"Fuck off, Lying," Trott said warily. He'd drawn a dagger from somewhere. "We got here first."

Lying chuckled, and Will gagged at the smell of something rotting, trying to angle his face away.

“Will,” they cooed, voice guttural and wet. One of their dirty claws extended and ran carefully down the side of Will’s face. It wasn’t deep enough to actually bleed, but it stung and sent shivers up and down the man’s spine. “Dear, sweet Will. Where’s the plant?”

"Lying!" Trott barked again. "Get away!" The other fae paid him no mind.

“All of you are _absolutely insane_ ,” Will snapped, fighting his shudder of fear. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.”

Lying snarled. “I can _smell_ it. Don’t lie to me.”

Panic swelled in his chest when the claw was pressed harder into his cheek. He naturally tried to reach out for some electricity to channel, but nothing was there. “L-look, if I had anything, it’d be in my bag!"

Maybe someone had slipped something into his pocket when he was maneuvering through the crowds, he thought wildly. Or that shop owner--maybe that was why she’d been acting so jumpy and been so eager to get him out of her shop.

Will was thrown against the wall, and he landed with a startled cry. The back of his head throbbed with pain, and he stared at the ceiling with wide eyes, trying to make his head stop spinning and eyes focus again. He could hear Lying and Smith’s voices raising, the former demanding the bag, and the sounds of fighting. The smell of the salty sea rose from nowhere as Trott called on his own magic.

He managed to raise his head just in time to see the dark fae lash out at Ross with what seemed like a tentacle, sending the gargoyle crashing into Smith. Trott managed to get a solid punch to Lying’s cheek, drawing out a guttural snarl of pain.

Will's gaze drifted away from them and towards where his bag lay a few feet away, and an idea struck him like lightning.

Dragging himself over to his bag, Will rummaged around in it until he felt his fingers brush against the wrapping paper of the stone. When he had a tight grip on it, he tore off the paper and struggled to his feet, turning towards where Trott and Lying were grappling.

“Trott, get down!”

Squeezing his eyes shut tight, Will raised the stone above his head and threw it with all of his might onto the ground. It broke with the sound of breaking glass, and then there was a horrifying shriek. Lying and the others whipped around, eyes widening as the specter took on shape, a ghostly figure with haunting, red eyes and sharp, jagged claws. Its mouth opened to reveal equally sharp teeth, letting out another piercing scream.

It charged straight for Lying and Trott, and the selkie had enough sense to heed Will’s warning and throw himself on the ground over Ross and Smith, covering them with his body. The spirit didn’t take notice, its focus completely on Lying.

It passed through Lying, but not without doing damage. They roared in pain as the spirit lashed out with its sharp claws, catching his side. Snarling, it whirled back around slashed again, this time landing a hit on the fae’s shoulder. It made a sharp hissing noise at the same time as the screeches, and jabbed a clawed hand into the back of his head.

The shadows covering the lights almost immediately started retreating, unable to stay put while the mountain spirit was leeching magic from their master. Will almost immediately started to feel his connection with the electricity return, the magic much more willing and eager to go to the sorcerer who could control it.

With no sort of anchor, the spirit was fading fast, already no more than an outline as it was pulled back to the earth. That didn’t seem to slow it down, though, taking as much magic from the fae could. It managed one more swipe, hitting the gouge in Lying’s side again and making it deeper. They let out a wet gasp, falling to their knees as the mountain spirit completely vanished.

Seeing that the fae was weak yet was still spitting out insults at a jeering Trott, Will didn’t waste any time. The electricity that had been refusing his command just moments ago now rushed to him, helping him block out the pain from his head and gathering in his fists, giving them a neon yellow glow.

“I’ve had _enough_ of this stupid fight!” Will roared, hands clenched. “I don’t have _time_ to deal with your crappy little bitchfest. It’s _fucking_ Yuletide, and I’m not going to be involved in any _fucking_ illegal activities. Lying, go back to whatever hole you crawled out of, and _leave me alone_.”

Lying hissed, showing their green teeth again and pressing their hand against their side to stem the bleeding. “You’ve made a big mistake, _sorcerer_ ,” they rumbled, voice echoing off of the walls. They seemed to melt, the bottom of their slimy robes turning to a black liquid that they started to slink into. “You shouldn’t’ve made an enemy of me.”

Will sneered at Lying, raising his fist menacingly. Electricity crackled around the corners of his eyes. “Whatever. Get out of here.”

At another flare of light, Lying snarled and their body was fully gone, leaving only a shifting puddle that was an oily black. It slithered towards the drain and down it, disappearing from sight. The only clue that they’d ever been there were the drops of black blood on the ground.

“ _I’ll be watching you, Will,_ ” Lying whispered, and then his presence disappeared.

When he was sure that the fae was gone, Will let out the breath that he’d been holding. The light from his hands disappeared, and the light bulbs on the wall dimmed back to their regular luminosity/intensity. He felt a wave of dizziness at the sudden loss of energy, but he steadied himself with a hand on the tiled wall. The pain in the back of his head started to return, no longer blocked out by adrenaline and electricity.

"Was that a fucking mountain spirit?" Smith asked in the resulting silence. Will ignored him, stumbling back over to his bag and making sure that nothing was damaged.

“Erm, alright, Will?” Ross called out to him hesitantly.

“I’m _not_ alright, you assholes!” Will snapped, struggling to get his stuff together. His limbs felt like jelly, and refused to fully do what he wanted them to do as he pushed the contents of his bag back in. “That was Uncle Honeydew’s freaking Yuletide present. I had to sell an arm and a leg for that!” He tried not to think about how that might actually end up being the case with Kirin.

His shoulders slumped and he buried his face in his hands, letting out a mournful sound. He didn’t have time to pick up another gift for Honeydew--he checked the clock on his phone and saw it was past one in the morning, and all of the shops were most certainly closed by then.

“Why would you bloody buy him something like that?” Smith exclaimed, bending down to help Trott up.

“Because he _wanted_ it, and it was _pretty_ ,” Will spat at them venomously. “It doesn’t matter now, does it? Leave me alone.”

“We can’t just do that,” Ross argued.

“Will, you realize what you just did, right?” Trott asked calmly. “You did a favor. For _us_.”

Abstractly he knew that, but hearing them say it made it more real and sobered him up a bit. “I know that,” Will grumbled, straightening his book bag on his shoulder. “I don’t care.”

They gaped at him as he started leaving. “W-wait, you can’t just _not care_ ,” Ross exclaimed. “You have to want _something_.”

Will stopped. An idea struck him. “Fine, y’know what? Get me another gift for Uncle Honeydew that was good as that one _before_ tomorrow morning, and we’re even. Simple enough, right?”

Smith started at him in disbelief. “Mate, I’m pretty sure you’re the only person in existence who would as for a Yuletide gift in a situation like this,” he said, voice betraying how dumb he thought the younger man was.

“How do you think we’re gonna do that, mate?” Trott asked testily. “All of the shops are already closed, and there are close to no uncommon dwarven crystals for sale in the city--”

“I don’t wanna hear it,” Will interrupted loudly, holding up his hands. “Trust me, I’m well aware of how hard it is. Which is why I’m making _you_ do it. You guys wanted me to give you something to do, so I just did. You’re welcome.”

He marched purposefully out of the dimly lit hallway, making his way back to the subway platform. When he did, he saw that the last train had already left a few minutes ago. Biting back tears, he sat down heavily on one of the benches, ignoring the three fae behind him.

Trott cleared his throat. “Do you, erm, need a ride home?” he finally asked, the words seeming to sit uncomfortably in his mouth.

Will gave him a tired look. “What’ll I need to do if I accept?” he said dryly. There was no way that they would give him a free ride.

Smith leered at him, but was silenced by a jab in his ribs from Ross. “Nothing,” Ross said. “We thought we'd offer in the spirit of Yuletide.” There was a pause. “And because we made a deal with that bitchy purple skinned nymph that we’d help you or the rest of your family, if the occasion arose,” he admitted reluctantly.

Alright, that made more sense. Lomadia had mentioned a couple of weeks ago how Nanosounds had had a run-in with the Garbage Court, ending with her on top. Apparently she’d cashed in that favor selflessly to protect the others in her not-quite-family. He made a mental note to do something nice for her.

The car ride to his house was speedy and tense, Smith swerving around cars and running stop signs. Smith and Trott didn’t say anything to him from the front seat, engrossed in their own banter and argument that Will was struggling to follow. It seemed like they’d come to the agreement that Will must have had the flower on him at some point, but then dropped it or had it stolen, and he didn’t fight them. Ross sat in the backseat with him, leaving a respectable distance between them and staring thoughtfully at him with his jewel eyes, thoroughly unnerving him.

They pulled up to Xephos’ house, parking in the street. Will clambered out of the car with a muttered ‘thank you’ and went to go open the front door.

Which was locked.

Biting his tongue to keep from screaming, Will pulled out his phone and dialed Lalna’s number.

Which went straight to voicemail.

At this point, Will was sure he was about to cry. He refused to turn around, knowing that the three fae were still sitting in their car, no doubt watching the whole thing. As a last resort, he remembered that his window was unlocked. Even though it was on the second level, he knew that he could get up onto the roof of the garage, and then probably maneuver his way up to his window. And if he fell and broke his neck, at least he wouldn’t have to deal with Uncle Xephos’ patented disappointed face.

“Doin’ alright, mate?”

He whipped around and held a finger to his lips, hissing at Ross to be quiet. The three fae were all snickering, but Ross was getting out of the car and walking towards him, making Will automatically take a step back.

“Door locked?” he asked. Will nodded reluctantly.

“My window’s unlocked, though, so I think I can climb up,” he said, already searching the wall for some kind of foothold. He could probably use the window ledge, and then from there reach up and grab the gutter running on the edge of the roof and pull himself up…

Ross gave him a pointed look up and down. “You sure you can do that by yourself?” he asked doubtfully.

“I don’t have much of a choice right now,” he snapped irritably at him. He climbed up awkwardly onto the first windowsill, balanced precariously.

He nearly screamed when he felt strong hands wrap around his thighs and lift him clear up. “Grab the roof,” Ross instructed, as if he wasn’t currently lifting Will like he weighed nothing.

Will scrambled to obey, and awkwardly shuffled and dragged himself onto the roof, slipping a few times in the snow. He waited a few moments for his heart to stop pounding so hard, and watched as Ross climbed up next to him with much more ease and grace.

“That window’s yours?” he asked, pointing at the nearest one. Will shakily nodded.

Ross leaned over the edge and grabbed the bottom of the window, pulling it all of the way open. “Do you think you can climb in from here?” he asked, glancing back at Will.

Pride dictated that Will at least had to _try._ He held his breath, pointedly not looking down as he felt for the sill of his window with his foot. When he found it, he grabbed the window and awkwardly swung in, barely managing to avoid face planting onto the carpet.

He glanced back outside soon enough to see Ross jump easily down to the ground and start walking towards the car. Smith was still laughing raucously behind his hand, banging the steering wheel, and Trott’s shoulders were shaking with silent chuckles.

Ears burning, Will slammed the window closed and chucked his bag by his desk. He shucked off his clothes, shuddering when he noticed that there were traces of what looked like slime and rotting vegetation from Lying. He threw them straight into the trash bin, and put on clean pajamas before crawling into bed and promptly passing out.

***

The next morning, Will woke up sore, grimy, and decidedly unhappy.

He rolled out of the bed, making his way straight to the shower. The house was still silent, Yuletide being one of the rare occasions that Xephos and Honeydew actually slept in, and he went to the one that was furthest away from his uncles’ bedroom so as not to disturb them.

After a long, hot shower, he came back wearing a towel and saw something glinting out of the corner of his eye. Frowning, Will went to the window and saw the small package wrapped messily in newspaper and duct tape sitting on the sill, a paper wedged under it.

He opened the window and picked up both items, quickly closing the window to keep out the cold. He sat down on the edge of his bed, gingerly turning the package around to examine all of its rounded sides. He didn’t see anything that seemed particularly dangerous, but still chose to read the note first, just in case.

It was penned in nearly illegible handwriting, with a doodle of what seemed to be a penis in the corner.

_Will--_

_Here’s your bloody Yuletide present. Lucky for you, Ross is a hoarder and collects gems like a madman and we found something good._

Penned off to the side, in a different handwriting: _It’s an old habit from the church, I swear_

The note continued.

_It’s something a lot less dangerous, because smart_ _people don’t buy gifts that have angry mountain spirits trapped in them. (Do you have any kind of self-preservation instincts?) This is just used to make crystals grow faster and stronger, some kind of thing that’s popular with dwarves further up north._

_We don’t care if he likes it or not, we did what you asked. Now don’t bring this up ever again._

_\--G.C._

Tossing the note onto his bed, Will finally felt confident enough to open the gift, peeling the tape back and ripping the newspaper.

It was the size of Will’s hand and a warm purple. The inside was swirling and sparkly, like a miniature galaxy and hundreds and hundreds of stars floating around it. The energy was much more serene than the crystal with the mountain spirit had been, its magic meant to urge regeneration and growth.

Will was putting it carefully into a box and just finishing rewrapping the space enchanter when Lalna crept in, wearing flannel pants patterned with various molecular structures. He let out a relieved sigh at the sight of Will and went to sit next to him on the bed.

“Thank the gods you’re here,” he said. “How’d you get in?”

“No thanks to you,” he accused, crossing his arms. “I tried to call you, and you didn’t pick up.”

“I'm _sorry_ ," Lalna whined. "My phone died and I couldn't stay up that long. But I left the door unlocked. Did it stay that way?"

"It most certainly did not."

"Then how did you get in?! Oh no, don't tell me Dad woke up."

"I climbed in through the roof."

" _The roof_?"

“Desperate times call for desperate measures, Lalna.”

***

Later, when Will ushered Xephos out of the kitchen, he set the box down in the pantry, doing as instructed by the shop owner. When he reopened the door, the closet was a good twenty feet deeper, the shelves clean and empty, save for one small flower.

It was planted in a small, dark blue container, leaves tinted red and petals a vibrant purple with yellow spots. He could feel magic hovering around it, powerful and warm in a way that was oh-so-tempting.

_Where’s the flower, Will_?

Well, apparently it'd been there all along.

Clenching his jaw, Will picked it up. He marched straight past Lalna and went outside to dump it into trash can without a second thought before going back inside.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas!


End file.
